Gerhard Richter’s painting practice is based on the photographic image. It may be representational or abstract, yet always drawn from photography as a media that records and also obscures memories and history. His canvases retain traces of an initial image, blurred by dragging the paint across the surface with a squeegee. Part of a generation of German artists in the post-war period, Richter’s work reflects on personal history in relation to a social responsibility.